Often during surgery, tissue may be traumatized or compromised such that it needs to be temporarily supported or isolated during the wound healing period. Materials that may be used as tissue sealants also may be used to temporarily support tissue and to seal leaks from tissue until the tissue heals. Tissue sealants that perform these functions are well known in literature and include a variety of natural and synthetic sealants including fibrin sealants, cyanoacrylate based sealants, and other synthetic sealants and polymerizable macromers.
Various types of devices have been developed that address many aspects of spraying technologies to deliver sealants. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,605,541 to Holm describes apparatus and methods for applying two or more components of a fibrin sealant. U.S. Pat. No. 5,368,563 to Lonneman et al. describes a sprayer assembly having angular connecting channels through which components of a fibrin sealant are discharged to cause mixing. U.S. Pat. No. 5,341,993 to Haber et al. describes a hand held sprayer having a remotely actuated spray tip. U.S. Pat. No. 4,001,391 to Feinstone et al. describes a method for spraying viscous and buttery fluids using a propellant and a pressurized container. U.S. Pat. No. 6,206,905 to Holm et al. describes a method and device for mixing the two components of a biomaterial using various tip configurations of the delivery system for mixing of the components.